Gutenberg Bible goes on display in Warsaw

A rare Gutenberg Bible, printed between 1452 and 1455 using Johannes Gutenberg’s revolutionary movable type, is on public display at the National Museum in Warsaw from Feb. 7 until Mar. 23.

The Gutenberg Bible from Pelplin will be on display at Warsaw's National Museum from Feb. 7 until Mar. 23.

PAP/Piotr Nowak

Widely regarded as the world’s most valuable book, this two-volume edition usually resides in Poland’s Diocesan Museum in Pelplin and features original oak binding made from Baltic timber.

Photo: PAP/Piotr Nowak

Researchers say the Bible’s turbulent history underscores its rarity: in 1939, it was evacuated via Warsaw, Paris, and London to Canada to protect it from the outbreak of World War II, then returned to Poland in 1959.

Biblia Gutenberga z Pelplina - Biblia Czterdziestodwuwierszowa - Muzeum Diecezjalne w Pelplinie im. Biskupa Stanisława Wojciecha Okoniewskiego pic.twitter.com/ZbYM2g3aTw

— Marcepan Marcepanowski (@MMARCEPANM) February 3, 2025

Only several dozen copies survive worldwide.

The copy from Pelplin is deemed especially significant due to a printing flaw that inadvertently revealed technical insights into Gutenberg’s workshop.

(jh)

Source: IAR, Onet